Roller attachment for sleds



March 25, 1941. E. L. coFsKY 36,331

' ROLLER ATTACHMENT FOR SLEDS Filed Oct. 25, 1939 ,zayz,

4 e b gafdpg'gmvsn-ron ATTOR N EYS Patented Mar. 25, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to roller attachments for sleds and has for an object to provide a simplified roller attachment for converting a sled into a coaster for summer use.

A further object is to provide a roller attachment having a clamp which may be formed of two pieces of strap metal shaped to engage and conform to the inverted T-shaped cross sectional contour of the sled runner, there being a bolt passed through the clamp below the runner and another bolt passed through the clamp above the runner to rigidly secure the clamp at vertically spaced points to the runner.

I A further object is to provide a device of this character which will be formed of a few strong simple and durable parts, which will be inexpensive to manufacture, and which will not easily get out of order.

Withthe above and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, it being understood that various modifications may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claim without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a sled equipped with roller attachments constructed in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the sled and roller attachments shown in Figure l.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of one of the roller attachments applied to the sled runner, and drawn to large scale. I

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Referring now to the drawing in which like characters of reference designate similar parts in the various views, l0 designates a. sled having runners l I of inverted T-shaped cross section secured to the sled by V-shaped brackets I2. For converting a sled having this type runner into a coaster, four roller attachments l3 are adapted to be secured to the runners.

Each roller attachment comprises a clamp having two side members l4 formed of strap metal, each member having an outwardly bowed jaw l5 adapted to embrace a respective side half of the runner tread l6, as best shown in Figure 4. The

clamp members extend upwardly along the sides of the web I! of the runner and above the web are connected by a bolt 18. A spacer I9 is sleeved on the bolt between the side members. Below the tread of the runner the side members are extended parallel and are connected by a bolt 29. A spacer 2| is disposed on the bolt between the side members.

Below the bottom bolt 20 the side members are bowed inwardly to provide stop shoulders 22 which are adapted to engage each other should there be any tendency of the side members to sway due to steering movement of the sled, and reinforce the clamp to resist any such side sway. Beyond the stop shoulders 22 the side members are directed abruptly outwardly and then extended downwardly parallel with each other to form the side members 23 of a yoke in which a roller 24 is mounted.

The roller may be formed of a disc of wood or other material and is loosely mounted on an axle formed by a bolt 25 passed through the center of the roller and through the side members 23 of the yoke. Wear washers 26 are-disposed on the axle outside of the roller.

From the above it will be seen that no castings or other expensive parts are used in the construction of the device so that the device may be inexpensivelymanufactured, and it will be further seen that by virtue of the side members of the clamp being bolted together above and below the runners the clamp is securely fastened to the runner at vertically spaced points so that accidental dislodgement is positively prevented.

What is claimed is:

The combination with a sled having a runner of inverted T-shaped cross section, of a roller attachment comprising a clamp formed of two side members of strap metal shaped to conform to the T-shaped cross sectional contour of the sled runner, a bolt passed through the members below the runner, a bolt passed through the members above the runner, the side members being bowed inwardly below the bottom bolt to provide stop shoulders adapted to engage each other and reinforce the clamp to resist side sway, the side members being directed abruptly outward and then extended downwardly parallel with each other below the stop shoulder to provide a yoke, and a ground engaging roller carried by the yoke.

EUGENE L. COFSKY. 

